10 October,2010 08:17 AM IST | | Sowmya Rajaram
Mumbai will come out in full force today to spread awareness about the importance of bringing down the parts per million CO2 in the atmosphere down to the magic number, 350. Here's what you need to know about 10:10 global
10/10/10 isn't just a fun coincidence of numbers to celebrate via email forwards for its rarity. It's also the day the world will be participating in events -- at last count, 6,923 events had been planned across 188 countries -- as part of 350's effort to grab the attention of policy makers and politicians to help save the planet from climate change.
A 350 event held at Gateway of India last year
And what is 350? As the website puts it, it's "the most important number in the world." It's precisely the parts per million CO2 that denotes the safe upper limit for carbon dioxide in the atmosphere. As long as the atmospheric concentrations of CO2 remain above 350, scientists postulate that the damage from global warming will accelerate.
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On this day, 350 is calling the attention of politicians to formulate greener policies that will get us to that goal. As Bijal Vachharajani, South Asia coordinator, 350, says, "It's one day that marks a worldwide petition to our politicians."
In Mumbai, today will be a day of green events across the city. Here's a dekko at what's planned for today, and how you can be a part.To know more about 350, log onto 350 (.org)
Go organic
The Farmers Market heads to South Mumbai this Sunday, where initiator Kavita Mukhi will be talking about climate change. Videos on the subject will be playing even as you shop for organic vegetables and read an eco-newsletter created by children who are members of Jalebi Ink, a content space for youngsters.
As Mukhi puts it, "I'll be conducting three interactive sessions at intervals through the day to help people understand what they can do. I want to honour our farmers and make citygoers aware of how they are contributing to the cause of the environment." Check out the Farmers market page on Facebook for details.
At: World Trade Centre, Cuffe Parade, 12 noon to 7 pm
Clean up your neighbourhood
Vijit Nanda is not your average 17 year-old. Wanting to do his bit for the environment, the Napean Sea Road resident approached Sanctuary Magazine editor Bittu Sahgal, who helped him come up with the idea of a vermi-composting and water-harvesting workshop that was conducted for the staff at Napean Sea Road's Priyadarshini Park on Saturday.
Today, the Priyadarshini Park Protectors (PDPs), as they call themselves, will honour the gardeners at the venue, get children to volunteer to clean the park, and sign up residents to be litter monitors. "I used to pass by PDP every day on my way to school, and thought of doing something for the area.
There are a lot of badam leaves there that don't compost well because they're quite thick. So, we taught the staff cheap, traditional ways of getting these leaves to compost faster," he says. Kids can enjoy insect and butterfly walks, and children from the Kids For Tigers Programme are planning to put up street plays. Visit the PDP Protectors page
On Facebook for details.
At: Priyadarshini Park, Napean Sea Road, 4 pm
Butterflies in your balcony
Anand Pendharkar, founder, Sprouts, an environmental trust, will be inviting the general public to see the butterfly park and food garden his team has created atop their Malad office. "We want to tell Mumbaikars that they can grow their own vegetables too, and reduce carbon emissions by composting their own garbage in balconies and terraces, like we have done."
Sprouts has collected bio-degradable garbage from street vendors, composted it and created its own food garden. "A regular household generates about 30 truckloads of garbage a year. Even if we compost half of that, we help the environment by preventing garbage from going to landfills, which take away cultivable land, reducing carbon and methane emissions when they are burnt, and controlling disease."
To know more and participate, sproutsonline@gmail.com, or log on to sproutsenvttrust(.org)
At: Sprouts Earth Shop, 5 Pawar Shop, opposite Malad Sahakari Bank, Rani Sati Marg, next to public foot over bridge, Malad (E), 5 pm
